Nature Smart - Naturalist Intelligence

Nature Smart - Naturalist Intelligence

When using the nature-smart part of the brain, we think with patterns. People who would rather be outdoors than indoors may be strong in this smart. We tend to love animals and are knowledgeable about them. We also are skilled at recognizing and classifying plants, minerals, and animals. The ability to recognize cultural artifacts like cars or sneakers may also depend on this smart.

What nature-smart people enjoy:
Being outside, animals, pets, flowers, plants, trees, rocks, dirt, water, sky, stars, ocean, forest, park, noticing changes in the environment, noticing patterns, collecting things, camping, hiking, fishing, crafts involving nature such as drying flowers, ...

If it's a strength or we want to strengthen it, we need:
Time outside, nature hikes, field trips in/about nature, time to examine things of nature, experiences in nature with people who are very nature smart, freedom to collect things based on patterns, their own garden and/or animals, conservation and recycling, ...

Suggestions for teaching and learning:
Relate topics to nature as often as possible, teach sciences that relate to nature, do experiments involving nature, learn about famous naturalists, compare things based on patterns, categorize and sort things based on similarities and differences, collect data, use magnifiers and microscopes and binoculars and telescopes to study nature, draw or photograph natural objects, study/take breaks outside, ...

Healthy/Positive uses:
Set up winter feeding stations for wild animals or birds, learn about and take care of animals and plants and the environment, invent new plants that can help to overcome hunger in Africa, decorate with flowers, relax in nature, work at or attend "outdoor school" and "outward bound" programs, become nature-scientists, meteorologists, park rangers, scout leaders, ...

Unhealthy/Negative uses:
Train animals for negative purposes, without regard for their well-being, manipulate genes in animals and plants to create something dangerous, plant illegal drugs and figure out how to hide from the authorities, ...